magical woodchips!

I have a buddy mentor of mine that has been creating a wonderland with woodchips ONLY for the last 25 years.  I was reminded to share this superb bit of info. as I was checking out some of the "hugelkultur" vids and threads...I am talking about ramial woodchips here, not bark...smaller stuff, about 4 in. or less in diameter....before lignification and other hardening chemical processes occur, I think!  Anyway, as with hugelkultur, we get the water retention, oxgenation/lack of compaction, and long term fertilization.  Most people's eyes widen and they ask what his secret is, when they see the size and abundance of his plant life.  It's the same answer every time.....woodchips.  Not only does he forgo watering and fertilizing, EVER, but he weeds with a rake, from his feet, and he "seedcasts" when he plants...never tucking in or thinning...Very little has been written or recorded about using woodchips in this all-around way...Snakeroot Organic Farm (www.snakeroot.net) has a great article under "in praise of chips"....it seems really similar to hugelkultur, just different shaped woody material....and different parts of the tree, which I can't explain...again reference snakeroot.net, I am very new at this, but I have seen and I believe, and now I am giving it a major try...wood, you like too?!

Thanks stillcurrent,

I would love to see some pictures of your wood chip gardens.

Do you have a lot of trouble with settling?

i use wood chips as well as bark and other wood products fairly exptensively in my gardens and I have similar results..however, i have to admit that I have also added composted organic dairy manure to a good deal of my gardens, which might help to reverse any nitrogen depletion.

I LOVE wood chips and woody mulches and hugel beds..which i have all 3 types of situations here, and I am totally thrilled with the difference in those beds over the beds that have not gotten the woody materials installed in them.

the difference is night and day.

the woody soils, are richer and have less problem with weeds...or moisture loss.

as I am able to come by the woody material i will continue to add it to my soil

Brenda Groth wrote:
i use wood chips as well as bark and other wood products fairly exptensively in my gardens and I have similar results..however, i have to admit that I have also added composted organic dairy manure to a good deal of my gardens, which might help to reverse any nitrogen depletion.

I LOVE wood chips and woody mulches and hugel beds..which i have all 3 types of situations here, and I am totally thrilled with the difference in those beds over the beds that have not gotten the woody materials installed in them.

the difference is night and day.

the woody soils, are richer and have less problem with weeds...or moisture loss.

as I am able to come by the woody material i will continue to add it to my soil

Not too much different than what I would do, use the wood chips as bedding for my animals and then apply it as mulch, semi composted!

I just went to wood chips to keep weeds down and retain soil moisture.

This is an interesting article:
http://www.snakeroot.net/farm/InPraiseOfChips.shtml

Campy thanks for that link, I really learned a lot. I have a ton of alders here and will begin to start chipping them up as soon as i'm able..we also have a lot of Poplar (he called popple)..tee hee..as well as willow and wild cherry that can be composted..with willow you gotta be careful as it will sprout though.

Willow is amazing that way.
I have had firewood logs take root !

in the late 1940's my dad cut my  mother a willow branch to prop up her clothesline..and it was frozen to the ground in the winter and so she just left it propped up all winter long, then they had to hang out all winter everyone..

well.

in the spring they had a willow tree growing under the clothesline..it still stands today.